A new hotel group has been formed and plans to open between 25 and 30 hotels in Ireland over the next five years. Choice Hotels Ireland, is a joint venture between the international hotel group Friendly Hotels plc and Premier Hotels, an Irish company based in Cork. The group claims its plan will make it the largest hotel group in the State.

The group is starting with 15 existing hotels, which have a total of 1,204 bedrooms. The 15 hotels consist of five Premier hotels and 10 hotels owned by the Court Hotel Group which has already agreed a franchising deal with Choice.

The group operates by taking a percentage of turnover from hotel owners who operate its franchise, although in some cases Choice acquires hotels itself.

The group operates three franchised brands: Comfort Inns which are two-star hotels, Quality Hotels which are three-star and Clarion Hotels which offer four-star accommodation. The management of the hotels is undertaken by Choice and all the hotels are strictly branded.

The company will use Choice Hotels Europe's central reservation system in London to serve customers wishing to stay at its hotels, which will be located in the Republic and Northern Ireland. Choice will also instigate a marketing campaign in September for hotels within the group at that stage.

The company says most of the hotels it hopes to sign deals with will be new to the market. The company will be managed by Mr Frankie Whelehan, a partner in Premier Hotels.

"While the hotel sector in the Republic is competitive, we regard the connection with Friendly Hotels plc as our insurance policy," he said yesterday. He added that the new company is prepared to spend up to £30 million over time to help the chain expand.

"While the main part of our business is franchising, we will also be taking the opportunity to buy hotels ourselves," he said.

He said the new company is split 50:50 between Premier and Friendly Hotels and sees established groups like Jurys and Ryan hotels as its main competitors.